Method of remodeling shoe lasts



April 12, 1938. H. w. LUCAS 2,113,661

METHOD OF REMODELING SHOE LASTS Filed Sept. 19, 1936 INVENTOR. v i a Harry W. Lucas a ATTORNEYS.

part Patented Apr. 12, 1938 2,113,661 METHOD OF REMODELING SHOE LASTS Harry Walter Lucas, Brockton, Mass., assignor to Vulcan Corporation, Portsmouth, Ohio Application September 19, 1936,

3 Claims.

The present invention relates to a method of remodeling or rebuilding shoe lasts, and particularly to such a method wherein the contour and dimensions of the last may be altered throughout the entire fore part of the last.

lasts which are otherwise serviceable.

age and damage ar tional premature r certain types of shoes, style rapidly and, in many inges require replacement of Breake also responsible for addieplacement of many lasts.

Any factor which reduces the expense occasioned by such replacemen manufacturer.

ts is welcomed by the shoe It is one object of this invention to' provide a method of remodeling lasts which will make available to the manufacturer a satisfactory substitute for a new last, but at a Another object of a remodeled last which will low cost. the invention is to provide have the strength of an entirely new last and will resist the stresses and strains imposed thereon operations employed during the various in the manufacture of shoes.

A further object of the invention is to provide a method of remodeling lasts, in which any desired style contour change may fore part of the remodeled last. with the method herein be made in the In accordance disclosed, such change may extend from the tip of the toe to a plane situated in the heel part hinge joint.

7 A still further provide a remodeled cally produced on a Another object of a method of remode tion of the original of the last back of the object of the invention is to last, which may be economiquantity production basis.

the invention is to provide ling a last, wherein the porlast to be retained may be accurately centered or aligned with the new part, thus insuring that the contour of the new part and that of the original part at the junction of the two parts will coincide.

1 It will be understood that the term as it is used herein,

In a block last, the fore and heel pa fore part refers to the whole portion the hinge, while the .back

rt will be understood to be a plane situated at the position occupied by the hinge in a two partlast.

A preferred embodiment of the invention is illustrated in the drawing wherein Fig. 1 is the side with the invention;

nstructed in accordance with 2 is a perspective view of a ck, processed in accordance Fig. 3 is a perspective view lathe modeled. In the last from the heel part, the

Serial No. 101,581

of the heel part which is to be retained in the remodeled last; Fig. 4 is a side elevation of a composite last, composed of the original heel part and the rough fore block as it appears in the last before the turning operation; Fig. 5 is a detail view showing a modification of the invention.

While a hinge-last will be described herein, it will be understood that the method of the present invention is also adaptable to other types of lasts. The present invention is particularly adapted to fulfill the demands of the shoe manufacturer who wishes to change the form of his last not only in the toe and ball sections but also in the portion to the rear of the ball, including a The plane I, at which the discarded fore part of the last is to be severed from the heel part, is I the hinge or a short" situated upon the axis of distance to the rear of this axis, depending upon the construction of the last which is being reillustrated in the drawing, the plane I is situated substantially upon the axis of the hinge. It is desirable anchor pins to retain as much wood between the rear anchor pin 2 and the plane 1 as possible, to insure that the strength of the remodeled last will be suflicient to resist the stresses imposed thereon by the shoe making operations.

The first step to carry out the invention is to remove the entire old fore part from the heel part and disconnect all of the hinge elements elements in the present instance being the links connect the two last parts. A flat face 3 is then formed on the heel part 4. Desirably, this face 3 is formed upon the heel part by sawing or otherwise shaping the heel part in the plane I. It is desirable, but not of the plane I be selected to coincide with the plane occupied by the original hinge abutting surface 5 on the heel part, provided the structure of the original last will permit such a procedure.

The next step in the process is the formation;

in lasts having and the spring which.-

essential, that the position.

the tenon member thereof upon-.

proper length and width to permit the turning of the new fore part therefrom. The rear face 8 of the block I is given a shape complementary to that of the face 3 on the heel part which has formed thereon a tenon 9 which snugly fits within the groove 6. The face 8 may be formed in any desired manner, such as by a pair of properly shaped rotary cutters spaced correctly to produce a tenon of the proper dimensions to be received in the groove 6. The heel part 4 and the rough fore block I are then assembled one upon the other and cemented together.

The composite last thus produced is then placed in a suitable centering fixture wherein a center I0 is spotted in the front face of the rough fore block and in accurate alignment with the original turning axis of the heel part 4. The alignment of the composite last is obtained by placing the heel part in contact with gauging elements previously adjusted to the heel part of a last which is to be used as the model in turning the remodeled lasts. This centering procedure is well known to those skilled in the art.

The composite last is then ready to be placed in the turning lathe. Its heel end may be held by means of the ordinary heel dog or it may be held by means of an adjustable remodeling dog, such as that shown at. H, in Fig. 4 of the drawing. In the latter case, the dog H is adjusted to place the turning axis of the heel part in alignment with the lathe axis. The toe dog I2, which is, or may be, of standard construction is forced into engagement with the center l0 upon the block I.

A model having the desired new contour is then placed in the lathe in the usual manner and the composite last which occupies the position normally occupied by the last block is then turned in accordance with the model.

The last thus produced and having the desired contour, may now be converted into a two-part hinge-last and desirably before cutting the last into two parts, a pair of anchor pin holes l4 and I5 are drilled in the last. These holes are located in the usual way by means of a special drilling fixture. To divide the last, the same procedure may be followed as that employed in dividing a simple one-piece last which has been turned from a standard last block. It is within the scope of the invention to produce a flexible two-part last from the block last thus far produced by the process, in any suitable manner.

As shown in the drawing, a saw cut is made upon the line It and another cut is made along the line H, each cut extending only as far as the cylindrical portion I 8 of the hinge. The material between the two outs is then removed in the usual manner and a band saw cut is then employed to form the cylindrical portion [8 of the hinge in a manner well known in the art.

To sever the two sections, a saw out is then made, preferably upon the plane I and extending from the sole surface of the last to the lower extremity of the cylindrical portion l8. By thus making this last saw out upon the plane I, the plane of the cut coincides with the plane of the original abutting face 5 of the heel part. It will be understood, however, that it is within the scope of the invention to sever the last at a point to the rear of that illustrated in the drawing.

The two last parts thus produced are held together by assembling the hinge elements in proper position. A recess l9 must be formed in the finished fore part face 8 in proper position to receive the forward ends of the links 2| and the spring 22. The rear end of the links and spring are received in the recess 23 already formed in the heel part 4. The pins 24 and 2 are driven into the holes l4 and I5, and also through the holes provided therefor at the ends of the links 2| and in the eyes of the spring 22 in a manner well known to those skilled in the art. The last is then completed by removing the surplus material at the tip of the toe, smoothing by sanding, and finishing in the usual manner.

It will be noted that the dove-tail joint above described, extends vertically of the last. It is within the scope of the invention to construct the last with the dove-tail joint extending horizontally from side to side of the last, as shown at 25 in Fig. 5 of the drawing. It will also be understood that other forms of interlocking joints than that form illustrated in the drawing may be employed in practicing the invention.

I claim:

1. A method of remodeling hinge-lasts comprising severing the original last in a plane transverse to its length at or to the rear of the hinge joint, forming one member of a clove tail joint in the material of the heel part of the original last, forming the other member of the said dove tail joint in the material of and at the rear face of a rough fore block, assembling and cementing the dove tail joint, turning the com posite last thus formed in accordance with a selected model, separating the fore part and heel part of the composite last along a path circumventing the dove tail joint to leave the joint .intact but including a portion of the abutting ends of the original heel part and remodeled fore part, and inserting a flexible joint between the separated fore and heel parts of the remodeled last.

2. A method of remodeling a hinge shoe last comprising severing the original last transversely behind the hinge thereof, forming an interlocking joint upon the abutting faces of the original last heel part and a new rough fore part, aligning the heel part of the composite last thus formed in a turning lathe with a model, the fore part of which is to be reproduced in the remodeled last, turning the last, and constructing a new hinge joint having flat abutting faces adjacent the bottom face of the last and'situated at the plane of the abutting faces of the original heel part and the new fore part.

3. The method of remodeling hinge-lasts comprising severing the last transversely near the hinge joint, forming one member of a dove tail joint on the severed end of the heel part of the original last, forming the other member of the dove tail joint on the rear end of a rough fore part, connecting the new fore part and original heel part by the dove tail joint, turning the composite last thus formed in accordance with a selected model, separating the fore part and heel part of the new composite last along a path circumventing the dove tail joint to leave the joint intact but including the lower portion of the abutting ends of the original heel part and remodeled fore part, and inserting a flexible joint between the separated fore and heel parts.

HARRY WALTER LUCAS. 

